*Click Here for Day #5 of our New Year’s Road Trip in Japan.

We got up early and enjoyed a delicious buffet breakfast at Hotel Fugetsu Hammond. We were being a little more leisure and didn’t start Day #6 of our New Year’s Road Trip in Japan until 10:00.

Kamishikimi Kumanoimasu Shrine

Our first stop for the day was at Kamishikimi Kumanoimasu Shrine which was a two hour drive away. Due to its location and the geography, we would be in the eastern most part of Kumamoto Prefecture before continuing on to Miyazaki Prefecture. The road took us through a variety of forested mountain passes and rolling fields of tall grass. The shrine was located at the foot of Mt. Aso which was the largest active volcano in Japan.

There was a gravel parking lot located across the street. The main staircase leading to the shrine was right next to the road. The path leading up to the shrine was very beautiful. There was still fresh snow on the ground and the sunlight peaking through the trees was picturesque.

After praying at the main shrine we decided to continue on the path. We treaded slowly as the parts of the ground were icy. They had these bamboo walking sticks that we used to break up the ice and keep our balance. At the top of the hill there was an interesting rock arch formation. We took our time and headed back to the car.

The goshuincho for the shrine was located at the Takamori Tourist Information Center. It was on the way to our next stop, so we decided to check it out. It was a short 10 minute drive. The center had this beautiful display of Kumamoto Castle that was made out of 110,000 black and white toothpicks. It was made by a class of local high school students. The attention to detail and precision were incredible. We picked up a goshuincho and a beautiful post card before heading out.

Shirakawa Spring

Our next stop was Shirakawa Spring. It was a super short six minute drive down the road. We found parking in a parking lot across the street. To reach the main spring, we crossed the street and walked for about five minutes. We paid a ¥100 entrance fee per a person and continued on. Along the way we saw the fresh spring water weave through the beautiful forest setting.

Some of the shops along the way were selling empty water bottles that we could fill with the fresh spring water. The natural spring water was so fresh that it could be safely bottled and consumed without any additional precautions being taken. We later learned that we could have brought our own empty water bottles to fill up if we wanted.

On our way back to the car we grabbed a quick snack at an Ajisen Ramen shop. We were interesting in trying their locally produced Kumamoto red beef. We ordered one from the outside counter. It took a little while as they were grilling it up fresh. The skewer came in a paper sleeve and was super hot. The red beef chunks were very tender and moist. We opened a piece up and found that the marbling of the fat was well distributed throughout the piece. The light salt flavor combined with the juiciness of the meat was perfect. It was a little pricey at ¥600 per skewer, but the meat was delicious.

Takachiho Gorge

We hopped back in the car and drove for about 50 minutes to Takachiho Gorge. The Takachiho Gorge area was very beautiful. The road from the town to the gorge was pretty narrow and featured a number of pretty steep switchbacks. The picturesque scene from all the travel pamphlets, of the gorge with the waterfall and boats was taken from the bridge that crosses over the gorge. Unfortunately, this bridge is not that wide. We had to wait a bit and drive slowly as there was no sidewalk and eager tourists were gathering to take pictures. We made our way to the Oshioi Parking Lot which was the closest parking lot to the boat rental station.

Takachiho Gorge Boat Rental

One of the most popular things to do in Takachiho Gorge was to rent a paddle boat and take it along the river. Originally, we had tried to reserve a boat via their online reservation site. We were unable to secure a time since we had waited until the last minute. We were a little bummed at the time, but it turned out to work in our favor. It was pretty cold that day and any time spent in the gorge would have been chilly.

This was definitely, a tourist expectations versus reality type situation. The expectation was to take a leisure paddle boat ride down the gorge. However, the reality was a congested waterway with a bunch of inexperienced people in paddle boats bumping into the walls of the gorge as well as other boats. At a rate of ¥5,100 per half an hour, we decided to save the boat ride for the next time. We’ll be sure to come back when its warmer.

We passed over the bridge and continued along a walking path to get a better view of the gorge. Along the way we stopped by this koi pond that also had these giant sturgeons in it. We were surprised with how big they were compared to the fully grown koi.

We went on a little further and were able to get some nice shots of the gorge and waterfall. There was an observation platform that surprisingly wasn’t too busy. We were interested in going a little bit further but found that the path had been washed away by a recent storm.

Mango Ice Cream

Before heading out, we checked some of the omiyage (souvenir) shops. Miyazaki Prefecture was known for their mangoes, so we decided to try one of their mango parfaits. There was small mango bits and a sweet mango sauce over vanilla soft serve ice cream.

Torinoya

It was a little over two hours to our final destination for the night. Our goal was to get out of the mountains before dark. Along the way we stopped and had a delicious charcoal grilled chicken dinner from Torinoya in the city of Nobeoka.

Roadside Station Takaoka

After our brief stop, we got back on the road for another hour and fifteen minutes before reaching Roadside Station Takaoka. The restroom facilities were dated, but it was quiet and we got a good nights rest.

Final Thoughts

We really enjoyed each of the spots we went to on Day #6 of our New Year’s Road Trip in Japan. Each one highlighted the natural beauty of the area. We were thankful to be travelling by car, otherwise we would have only been able to see a fraction of what we actually saw. We really liked Kamishikimi Kumanoimasu Shrine and Shirakawa Spring in particular. As we continued our New Year’s Road Trip, we made a point of visiting more rural attractions in addition to the famous ones. The food we had was absolutely delicious. The Kumamoto red beef and the Miyazaki charcoal grilled chicken were amazing. We can’t wait to eat them again.

More to Come…

Click Here for Day #7 of our New Year’s Road Trip in Japan.